Delhi receives much-needed respite from heat with rain spells; min temp at 19.6°C

The weather department has predicted thunderstorms with further rainfall during the day and maximum temperature is expected to hover around 26°C.

Delhi experienced a brief spell of light rainfall on Monday morning, accompanied by a minimum temperature of 19.6°C, which is six notches lower than the season's average.

Commuters out during rain at Connaught Place, in New Delhi. (Sanjeev Verma/HT) (File) (HT_PRINT)

The relative humidity at 8.30 am was recorded at 87 per cent. The weather department has predicted thunderstorms with further rainfall during the day. The maximum temperature is expected to hover around 26 degrees Celsius.

Parts of Delhi experienced light rainfall on Sunday, resulting in a drop in the maximum temperature to 28.7°C, which is 10 notches below the season's average and the lowest recorded for the month since April 4, 2015, according to the India Meteorological Department. On April 4, 2015, the city recorded a high of 26°C.

The IMD reported that Delhi's monthly average maximum temperature for April is typically 35.3°C, but this year, it was 1.2 degrees Celsius cooler than the long-period average for the month.

Why the temperature difference this year..

The recent back-to-back western disturbances, particularly at the beginning and end of April, have contributed to keeping the temperature in Delhi under control. As a result, the city recorded 20.1mm of rainfall in April, which is 23% higher than the monthly average of 16.3mm.

This year's April has been the wettest in Delhi since 2017, when the city received 26.9mm of rainfall. These details were provided by meteorological officials.

IMD's prediction

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a forecast of thunderstorm and hailstorm activity across various parts of the country including Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana in the north and Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and South Peninsular Karnataka in the south.

The weather agency also predicted that the wet spell is likely to continue till May 3, and is expected to reduce significantly from May 4. The thunderstorm activity over most parts of the country is likely to subside from May 5.

In its earlier forecast at the beginning of April, the IMD had predicted above-normal temperatures across most parts of the country, except for a few areas in northwest India.

(With PTI inputs)